Wingstop, Kennesaw GA

Not too many weeks ago, I was idly clicking around one of those Wikipedia boxes about, ahem, “chicken-based restaurant chains” – how glamorous does that sound? – and read about the Texas-based chain Wingstop for the first time. The first store in the chain of 600-plus stores opened in Garland twenty years ago. I was surprised to learn they had a presence in Georgia, and even more surprised that there was one just on the other side of I-75 across from Kennesaw State. Continue reading “Wingstop, Kennesaw GA”

Gio’s Chicken Amalfitano, Atlanta GA

A few Saturdays back, Andy from Burgers, Barbecue and Everything Else suggested that we meet up with him and his wife at one of Giovanni Di Palma’s restaurants. He opened Antico about five years ago to near-universal acclaim and out-the-door lines that have just continued to grow. In late 2012, this sister joint called Gio’s Chicken Amalfitano, and a companion place to get sandwiches and gelato that you can visit through an adjoining door, joined it. As if parking for Antico wasn’t already enough to make a man weep. Right now, early Saturday nights require an off-duty cop and at least two fellows in yellow vests to direct everybody. And Di Palma has his eyes on neighboring buildings for additional restaurants. Continue reading “Gio’s Chicken Amalfitano, Atlanta GA”

Table & Main, Roswell GA

Well, here’s serendipity. A few Sundays back, our old friend David came by and we drove over to Roswell. We met up with Leslie, from The Food and Me, to try a popular restaurant in Roswell’s incredibly cute downtown stretch. I really love the way that Roswell has managed to maintain and support a thriving downtown scene full of busy independent restaurants just one curve and a parking lot away from the main, traffic-clogged stretch through town. Unfortunately for us, the restaurant that we wanted to try was so busy – they don’t take reservations – that we were looking at an hour’s wait. We decided to stretch our legs and get some exercise while waiting, since the restaurant does at least take your number in order to send a text when a table is ready. Continue reading “Table & Main, Roswell GA”

Guthrie’s, Norcross GA (CLOSED)

For a few years in the mid-1990s, Marie lived in an apartment complex in Athens called Tivoli, and then she moved across the street to another place. From either of her front doors, she could have hit the back side of the Cedar Shoals Guthrie’s with a tennis ball. Marie is an excellent cook and claims that, in the 1990s, she didn’t eat out all that much, but when she didn’t feel like cooking, the Guthrie’s was awfully close by and very tasty. Continue reading “Guthrie’s, Norcross GA (CLOSED)”

Greenwood’s, Roswell GA

Greenwood’s is one of those restaurants that opened in the wrong time and place for today’s hobbyists. Between fifteen and twenty years ahead of the trend for new Southern cooking, Bill Greenwood moved down from Maryland and came up with an oddball recipe for fried chicken that he was certain would turn people toward the less time-intensive comfort foods on his menu. It didn’t work, because people love it. The chicken takes between twenty and thirty minutes to prep, and is fried in a peppery bath of honey and lemon. The crust is unlike any I’ve ever tasted, and is certainly one of the most interesting and tasty in the Atlanta area. Continue reading “Greenwood’s, Roswell GA”